wow I have 3 books by lung... if that is his name.. he states in one of them the name Ed walsh as a joke... I won't knock him.. he has very insightful knowledge within his text...
I don't recall him to be martial artist specialist... I figured out on my own he had a degree in psychology since my wife is currently studying that. One last thing i want to say is would you by a mix cd by a joe smith or solo assassin.

Regardless of any potential value to be gained from his books, consider the following.

1. The guy thinks he is a ninja

2. refer back to 1

3. The guy has enough standard MA training to do a few diagrams, but nothing that you can't just as easily find in another basic self defense book.

4. seriously, refer back to 1

5. Did he mention prison time or abuse from law enforcement in an interview? Could this be an instance of an ex prison inmate (or prison inmate-wannabe) trying to cash in on the world of super secret prison martial arts turned super secret ninja arts?

Regardless of any potential value to be gained from his books, consider the following.

1. The guy thinks he is a ninja

2. refer back to 1

3. The guy has enough standard MA training to do a few diagrams, but nothing that you can't just as easily find in another basic self defense book.

4. seriously, refer back to 1

5. Did he mention prison time or abuse from law enforcement in an interview? Could this be an instance of an ex prison inmate (or prison inmate-wannabe) trying to cash in on the world of super secret prison martial arts turned super secret ninja arts?

6. Secret instructors that are classified? Yet again from the afformentioned interview... leads me to refer back to 1.

7. Haha Lung... is neither a dragon, nor a lung. And for ****'s sake, there's nothing funny about either.

I hope this helps steer all our young aspiring ninja from the clutches of this heinous imposter, and back into the loving outstretched arms of Ashida Kim.

I've read most of his books on the subject of ninja, and i don't ever really recall him claiming to be one.

secondly he wasn't trying to instruct anyone in any particular style in those books, he threw out a few techniques and a lot of basics that are universal to most martial arts. i think this was done to get readers not to follow exact techniques and movements (possibly why his diagrams are so vague) but to see the similarities in all movements and all martial arts, which would increase the ability to improvise in a combat situation as well as overall combat effectiveness.

Miyamoto musashi, considered japan's greatest swordsman was a master painter, but that doesn't mean all martial artists have to be. i'll admit some of his pictures made me laugh, but they were proportioned correctly and got the general idea across.

he also points out that it matters little whether the moves come from the ninja of ancient japan, or an ex prison inmate, as long as it works.

and on the topic of ninja, i don't think i've ever seen a ninja history section so accurate or insightful. he explains how a lot of the mysticism surrounding ninja is either propaganda devised by the ninja themselves, or the result of overactive imaginations of their embarrassed victims.

he has a lot of books out that don't have to do with ninja at all, he gives due credit to anybody who has ever kicked ass. in his book "Knights of darkness" he talks about: hashishin middle eastern assassins, ulfhedin norse wolfshirts, malaysian nightsiders, criminals and drug runners, native americans, moshuh nanren "chinese ninja", russian spetznaz, the vietcong, nazi "werewolf" sappers, u.s. green berets and other special ops forces.

no offense but maybe you should actually look into his "potential value" before calling him a "heinous imposter"

Open mindedness

I have personally read all of his books, purely out of interest of the mind and the infusion with Martial Arts (Especially ninjitsu which is my current study).

I understand the personal opinions given by all, however to be able to slander Dr. Lung without fully doing any investigations into the realism of what he teaches and says in his books, is completely uncalled for.

A bit of respect is due to Dr. Haha Lung as his insight and wisdom into certain aspects of martial arts and life in general is something to be admired.

I don't know how much credibility you can attribute to a guy who does not use his real name, and yet puts a Dr. in front of it.

Secondly, any ninjer book that talks about ninjas, vikings, jihadists, the Vietnamese, but completely skips pirates, speaks volumes about the author's lack of understanding the delicate interpersonal conflicts between ninjas and pirates.

You clearly need to look in a mirror when you judge other people.
"There's a difference between open-mindedness and outright retardation."

What evidence do you have to state otherwise than your own personal opinion?? So clearly you have not thought this through that much either, because one is not able to judge a book by its cover before reading the pages within.

Unless you have solid fact behind your statements, you are only fighting a loosing battle. Each and every person is able to express their own personal opinions and have their own unique views but to go round converting the masses to dislike (hate) one particular author, whom I might add has actually accomplished something great by being able to write so many popular books, is a person lacking self confidence and allot of maturity.

And one more thing...what the hell do pirates have to do with this current topic?? Yes I am aware that there is a constant dispute between Pirates and Ninjas, but how is this relevant???

If you need to look in a mirror after reading, you have a problem. I just read the damn book.

What evidence do you have to state otherwise than your own personal opinion?? So clearly you have not thought this through that much either, because one is not able to judge a book by its cover before reading the pages within.

The burden of proof is on YOU. If you say someone is correct, bring proof/support of why you think/feel so. Otherwise, it's blatant cock-fighting with no solid evidence, and as such, utterly worthless.

Whenever I read any author about any topic I take seriously, I do thorough cross referencing with other credible sources. IMO, Wikipedia and google do not constitute as such. Historical literature on the subject might be a big help. Forum discussions might be helpful, but that can go 50/50.

I don't see you bringing any proof, internet or literature-based. As such, I have no reason to take you seriously. Bring something of value, or stop bitching.

Unless you have solid fact behind your statements, you are only fighting a loosing battle.

If you question any serious Budo historian about NINJA history, they will either give you an annoyed look, or tell you that ninjas as you think of them, only came up after 1940's. Look into this if you want. I won't do your work for you.

Each and every person is able to express their own personal opinions and have their own unique views but to go round converting the masses to dislike (hate) one particular author, whom I might add has actually accomplished something great by being able to write so many popular books

You mean like Ashida Kim?
**Edited**
To ellaborate, any jackass with a pseudonym can write a book. How do you know I haven't?

is a person lacking self confidence and allot of maturity.

And making half-assed insinuations about a poster who's opinion differs from yours somehow makes your view point more legitimate?

And one more thing...what the hell do pirates have to do with this current topic?? Yes I am aware that there is a constant dispute between Pirates and Ninjas, but how is this relevant???

That, my dear friend, is commonly referred to in the English language, as sarcasm, although I don't think it's my place to lecture you in English, as I am ESL.

**EDITED SOME MORE**
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I should also point out that you failed to address Mother Lung's credibility, i.e. using a pseudonym and claiming a PhD, which can not be verified.

If you need to look in a mirror after reading, you have a problem. I just read the damn book.

The burden of proof is on YOU. If you say someone is correct, bring proof/support of why you think/feel so. Otherwise, it's blatant cock-fighting with no solid evidence, and as such, utterly worthless.

Whenever I read any author about any topic I take seriously, I do thorough cross referencing with other credible sources. IMO, Wikipedia and google do not constitute as such. Historical literature on the subject might be a big help. Forum discussions might be helpful, but that can go 50/50.

I don't see you bringing any proof, internet or literature-based. As such, I have no reason to take you seriously. Bring something of value, or stop bitching.

If you question any serious Budo historian about NINJA history, they will either give you an annoyed look, or tell you that ninjas as you think of them, only came up after 1940's. Look into this if you want. I won't do your work for you.

You mean like Ashida Kim?
**Edited**
To ellaborate, any jackass with a pseudonym can write a book. How do you know I haven't?

And making half-assed insinuations about a poster who's opinion differs from yours somehow makes your view point more legitimate?

That, my dear friend, is commonly referred to in the English language, as sarcasm, although I don't think it's my place to lecture you in English, as I am ESL.

**EDITED SOME MORE**
------------------------
I should also point out that you failed to address Mother Lung's credibility, i.e. using a pseudonym and claiming a PhD, which can not be verified.

this is turning from an intelligent discussion to cyber name calling.

it may be true that no one has brought any evidence forward to make him more credible, but why should anyone bother when you've done nothing to make him any less credible?

I definitely understand what you're trying to say, blindly believing anything you read is naive, and if you have any info to disprove his work then i would honestly love to hear it. I do believe that a lot of what he says is credible, but as you've said I have no proof of it, i myself hate being fooled and if you can disprove anything he puts forth then please do share.

as for the ninja thing, feudal japan was a very hard place to live if you weren't a samurai. I doubt that the ninja would have survived very long if anyone actually KNEW anything about them. of course this is based off my observations from reading what he puts forth in his books, so again if you can disprove anything he says about ninja history then please do, i find his
version of it fairly believable though.

sarcasm aside i do think you had something with the pirate thing. a lot of people get caught up in the stupid pirate-versus ninja thing, but don't realize just how similar they were. the relationship between ninja and the samurai was very similar to that of pirates and organized european or colonial governments.

again, not trying to fight anyone here, just if you can shed some light on the truth of the matter then please do.

as for the ninja thing, feudal japan was a very hard place to live if you weren't a samurai. I doubt that the ninja would have survived very long if anyone actually KNEW anything about them.

So your best argument in favor of the historical existence of ninjas is that there is no record of them? i.e. nobody's ever heard of the secret mystical warriors, so they must have existed. If they existed and were at all effective, they'd show up in the historical record from time to time.